Articles & Case Studies

The town of Mooresville in North Carolina (USA) has been using HWM leak detection equipment to save time, money and water in its 240 miles of water mains, complying with new state regulations in the process. With the new equipment, Mooresville Public Services Department has found itself able to identify and repair leaks in the distribution network as and when they occur, minimising disruption to both the service and during the maintenance process.

Mooresville is a town of 33,000 people that provides an average daily flow of 12.2 million litres of water to 13,000 homes and businesses. In the summer of 2008, officials at the town’s Public Services Department were recording a 10% non-metered water rate, and underground water leaks were damaging the road network directly. In addition to this, the extensive digging required to find and repair the leaks obviously came at further cost and caused further disruption and congestion. With the passage of North Carolina House Bill 2499 requiring public water services to develop and implement water conservation measures, as well as new industries moving into the area that would drastically increase water requirements, officials knew it was time to upgrade their water management program.

After evaluating competing products, it was decided that the acoustic leak detection equipment designed and manufactured by HWM was the best match for their operational and budgetary requirements. The order was placed with Fluid Conservation Systems (HWM’s sister company in the USA). Mooresville Public Services Director, John Vest, said: “The FCS equipment was compatible with our record keeping system, and simple enough so that the guys in the field could use it and feel confident that they were collecting accurate results.”ť

Within 6 months of installing the equipment, Mooresville Public Services staff had located and repaired 24 leaks, saving an estimated total of $80,000 (roughly Ł50,000) annually. Workers were pinpointing leaks accurately, allowing preventative maintenance work to be scheduled with advance public notification to avoid traffic congestion. “The FCS equipment has really enhanced our planning capabilities. We’re finding leaks before they become a problem”, said Field Operations Supervisor, WD Bumgarner.